Israeli security minister stirs diplomatic outrage with flotilla activist abuse video | Israel

Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, sparked a diplomatic crisis by publishing images of Israeli security forces mistreating international activists detained while trying to get to Gaza with assistance.

There was a fast and furious response from countries whose citizens were on the boats, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Ireland, in many cases delivered from the top of government itself.

The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, one of the country’s staunchest allies, called Ben-Gvir’s behavior “despicable” and said the minister “betrayed the honor of his nation.”

The video shows dozens of men and women kneeling in a row, their foreheads facing the ground and their hands zipped behind their backs. Ben-Gvir appears waving the Israeli flag, mocking detainees, and shouting “the Israeli people are alive” in the face of a bound man.

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said the footage was “unacceptable” and demanded the release of all Italian citizens involved, as well as an apology for the ill-treatment and display of “utter contempt” towards the Italian government.

In his long statement published on social media, Meloni said, “It is unacceptable that these demonstrators, including many Italian citizens, are subjected to this treatment that violates human dignity.”

Spain’s foreign minister described the treatment as “monstrous, shameful and inhumane”. Her British counterpart, Yvette Cooper, said she was “truly appalled” by the video, which “violates the most basic standards of respect and dignity about how people should be treated” and added that she was in contact with the families of British citizens held by Israel.

More than 400 activists from 40 countries traveling on 50 ships joined the flotilla, organizers said. It set out from Türkiye carrying food and other aid in the latest high-profile attempt to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza.

Seven months after a ceasefire came into force in Gaza, hunger has become widespread, most Palestinians live in tents or overcrowded shelters without access to adequate sanitation and clean water, and Israeli attacks still occur almost daily.

Israeli forces intercepted the boats in international waters on Tuesday and took everyone on board to Israel. Earlier on Wednesday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung also condemned Israel’s actions, calling them “way out of line” and questioning the legal basis for detentions outside Israeli territorial waters.

Global outrage over their treatment led Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn Ben-Gvir just hours after the video was posted online.

“Minister Ben-Gvir’s approach to the flotilla activists is not in line with Israeli values ​​and norms,” ​​he said, adding that he had ordered the group’s deportation “as soon as possible.”

Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar launched a harsher personal attack on the national security minister. “You knowingly harmed our state with this shameful show, and this is not the first time this has happened,” he said in his statement to the X channel. “You are not the face of Israel.”

Rights groups have documented widespread, systematic torture and mistreatment of Palestinians in Israeli prisons and detention centers during the Israel-Gaza war sparked by Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023.

Sari Bashi, director of the rights group Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, said Ben-Gvir’s video publicly celebrating the mistreatment of citizens by some of Israel’s closest allies reflected a broader culture of impunity.

“To me, this is an indication of how badly the rights and well-being of detainees have been undermined. [Ben Gvir’s] leadership,” Bashi said.

“A guard who sees that his boss is proud of his boss’s mistreatment of foreign detainees will not hesitate to mistreat Palestinian detainees and will not even have to fear being caught. Ben-Gvir says this behavior is welcomed and encouraged at the highest levels.”

Vigilante rights group Adalah, which represents some of those detained, said it had “documented similar patterns of mistreatment of activists in previous fleet missions for which Israel faced zero accountability” and called on the international community to take urgent action to protect activists held by Israel.

The video was released the day after finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, another far-right member of the Israeli cabinet, announced that he had ordered the ethnic cleansing of a Palestinian village in response to reports that the international criminal court (ICC) was seeking an arrest warrant for him.

Smotrich held a press conference to attack the ICC and issue an order to evacuate all residents of Khan al-Ahmar, which is home to more than 700 people. It is located in the heart of the occupied West Bank, about 10 kilometers east of the Old City of Jerusalem, surrounded by Israeli settlements.

The ICC chief prosecutor has requested arrest warrants for Smotrich, Ben-Gvir, Settlements and National Missions Minister Orit Strook and two Israeli military officials, Haaretz newspaper reported this week.